Grass - gravel border ideas

[jeepinator]

I have about 120 feet of grass/gravel bordering to do. We just installed (grew) a new lawn with sprinklers and the whole 9 yards. And a new graveled parking area is adjacent to it, with some pretty loose gravel (and will likely stay loose at is not used much). I'd like something that lives up to the quality of the new lawn, but simple and not terribly expensive. Perhaps 2/3 of the way up the scale. We priced out some concrete border stuff. Top of the line in both appearance and cost!

What have you done?
FWIW, I am not afraid of work. For work I don't work at all, if you know what I mean, so actually working when I am not at work is not really work either
It's more like fun.

Thanks!

 

[Molerj]

This may not go with the rest of your landscaping but I have used railroad ties in the past. They can look neat if you place them so that the top of the tie is even with the surface. Paint them with some used oil.

 

[LBrown59]

I have about 120 feet of grass/gravel bordering to do. We just installed (grew) a new lawn with sprinklers and the whole 9 yards. And a new graveled parking area is adjacent to it, with some pretty loose gravel (and will likely stay loose at is not used much). I'd like something that lives up to the quality of the new lawn, but simple and not terribly expensive. Perhaps 2/3 of the way up the scale. We priced out some concrete border stuff. Top of the line in both appearance and cost!

What have you done?
FWIW, I am not afraid of work. For work I don't work at all, if you know what I mean, so actually working when I am not at work is not really work either
It's more like fun.

Thanks!

Trouble with RR ties post curbing is you have to drive around it > You can't mow across it.
Just let the grass and gravel meet where they do much better than driving around hundreds of feet of RR ties 4x4s or curbing to mow or remove snow.
Tried all thes items for edging ;they'e all a PITB.
Best solution>< Pave not gravel.

 

[jeepinator]

I kinda like the RR tie look. Some people over do it though.
My reason for creating a border at all is that gravel will find its way into my grass, and the grass will invade my gravel. When I bought this place you couldn't tell where one ended and the other began. Only when I tilled did I really learn.
Plus I REALLY don't want anyone driving over my sprinkler heads!
I am kinda going for the estate look, but I don't have an estate budget. Hence why it is not paved. Although that will happen eventually.
If I did use RR ties, I think I'd have them maybe halfway in the ground. Just enough to provide some feedback to people parking there.
...and we don't get snow here much. Not enough to move anyways. If it snows, the place pretty much shuts down.

 

[KubotaSteve]

I went with the railroad tie along the one side of my drive as the stone kept sliding into the yard. I dug down enough to make the ties just above the drive about an inch or so and the yard is right at the top of the ties so I can mow over the side of them. It works great and has saved a lot of stone. It actually looks pretty good but I used almost brand new ties. My drive is a little over 200 feet long and 3 of us did it in an afternoon. The problem I'm going to run into is eventually I want to pave my drive and I'm debating whether to leave the ties there or pull them up.
One other thing you could do but it may be pricey is use composite decking material on its side. It would keep the two separated and wouldn't be that noticeable. The downside is trying to keep it straight as it likes to bend easily.
You may want to try some of that rubberized looking mulch. Not sure of the cost but it looked pretty good in the flyers. That would give the more natural look.
If cost wasn't a factor, I'd go for the nice pavers. They look really nice when done right.

 

[LBrown59]

The problem I'm going to run into is eventually I want to pave my drive and I'm debating whether to leave the ties there or pull them up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do away with them if you pave.
I had 4x4s along my T shaped driveway.
They were a real pain in the but. You couldn't drive the tractor across them to mow so you had to drive around them and they were nothing but a nuisance when it came to plowing snow.
I finally removed them as they were more bother than the gravel getting into the grass,
One big reason I want to pave is it eliminates both the problem with the gravel in the yard and the fiddling and fussing with the Ties or 4x4s.
Why do expensive paving and eliminate only one of the problems when paving will take care of both problems ? ? ? ?
>>> >>>
>>>> >>>>
MY First Car
http://chevy.tocmp.com/chevyscrapbook/files/kamp50.jpg
Our First Car
1960 Chevy Impala Convertible, Classic Car Pictures

 

[lawn_king]

cobble stones are nice, easy to install & they last forever.

 

[tractchores]

It won't last like gravel, but wood chips are a good substitute and if you have a chipper you can make them on the spot. I do this on my trails and they last several years and ultimately become soil raising the trail. Otherwise sounds like you may have a lot of work ahead!

 

[gphil12873]

I say no on the rail road ties also. I purchased a home with a drive about 200 feet and the previous owner put down RR ties along each side. I liked them at first but after about 6 months of living there I gave them away. Sort of you want them you come and load them. They were gone in two days. I would have to drive out to the end of the drive just to get back into my yard. They would be ok if you didnt have to cross over them. They did work for keeping grass from getting into the road. But i am planning to concrete the drive but havent mustard up the money to do it.

 

[DrRod]

In my part of the country we use slate for driveways. Its abundant and very cheap - like $20 for a truck load [spreading it is another matter]. While it will break down through use, it still lasts 20 years or more. But grass encroaches from the sides and weeks spring up in the middle. I control all this with a semi-annual shot of Round-up. I spray it from an ATV tank and it takes no time at all and is actually sort of fun.

One option I rarely see used is granite blocks. In fact, the only place I can think of that uses these is the Baltimore Zoo. They have cubes about 4 inches square and spaced about 6 inches apart. Grass fills in the gaps and it makes a water permeable, never muddy, low maintenance parking surface. As with anything, I'm sure there are pluses and minues but they've had these for 50 years and it would seem an excellent alternative.

 

[PandDLong]

I have 800' of driveway to "edge". I am happy to use the round-up spray method for controlling weeds on just over half and letting some gravel slide into the grass on this same distance. But, on the remainder I would really like a cleaner edge. The challenge is that this section is all curves and rounded edges so RR ties/4X4s won't work.

A local landscaper suggested edging with a trench about 8" deep and 6" wide that is filled with 1" crushed rock - it is supposed to keep the grass from creeping into the road and rock of this size shouldn't migrate much and the odd stray in the grass would be easy to kick back onto the road. I am not convinced this would work well or beyond a couple of years.

Anyone use this trench with crushed rock border method?


I am also intrigued with the idea of on-edge composite decking mentioned earlier in the thread - because it can be curved - and have it laid low enough to be a mowing edge. Anyone used this approach?

 

[MossRoad]

Otherwise sounds like you may have a lot of work ahead!

Or behind.... this is a 9 year old thread! :laughing:

 

[jeepinator]

Thanks for all the replies!

I ended up, only last summer, installing concrete blocks. The blocks are flush with the gravel, but create a small wall near the low end of the parking area on the grass side. Basically, the lawn has a pitch to it which was greater than I wanted the parking area, so I split the difference. Looks nice!

 

[jyoutz]

I have about 120 feet of grass/gravel bordering to do. We just installed (grew) a new lawn with sprinklers and the whole 9 yards. And a new graveled parking area is adjacent to it, with some pretty loose gravel (and will likely stay loose at is not used much). I'd like something that lives up to the quality of the new lawn, but simple and not terribly expensive. Perhaps 2/3 of the way up the scale. We priced out some concrete border stuff. Top of the line in both appearance and cost!

What have you done?
FWIW, I am not afraid of work. For work I don't work at all, if you know what I mean, so actually working when I am not at work is not really work either
It's more like fun.

Thanks!

If you’re not afraid of work, get some 2x6’s and bags of concrete. Slowly pour your own concrete borders. Or form it up and rent one of those pull behind concrete trailers and do it all at once. A cheaper option is to buy those steel edgers at Home Depot. They come in 8-10’ sections with steel spikes. I did this to edge flower beds in my yard.

 

[jyoutz]

I have 800' of driveway to "edge". I am happy to use the round-up spray method for controlling weeds on just over half and letting some gravel slide into the grass on this same distance. But, on the remainder I would really like a cleaner edge. The challenge is that this section is all curves and rounded edges so RR ties/4X4s won't work.

A local landscaper suggested edging with a trench about 8" deep and 6" wide that is filled with 1" crushed rock - it is supposed to keep the grass from creeping into the road and rock of this size shouldn't migrate much and the odd stray in the grass would be easy to kick back onto the road. I am not convinced this would work well or beyond a couple of years.

Anyone use this trench with crushed rock border method?


I am also intrigued with the idea of on-edge composite decking mentioned earlier in the thread - because it can be curved - and have it laid low enough to be a mowing edge. Anyone used this approach?

That doesn’t work at all. The grass will grow in the large rock.

 

[lman]

That doesn’t work at all. The grass will grow in the large rock.

Glyphosate is your friend.

 

[jyoutz]

Glyphosate is your friend.

The problem is that the grass is connected by roots to the grass in the yard and then you get herbicide killed patches of lawn.

 

[lman]

Glyphosate only kills foliage that it contacts. It can't kill patches in your lawn unless you spray those patches. Roots are not a factor. You can spray roots of a tree and it won't do a thing.

 

[jyoutz]

Glyphosate only kills foliage that it contacts. It can't kill patches in your lawn unless you spray those patches. Roots are not a factor. You can spray roots of a tree and it won't do a thing.

You are correct that glyphosate is foliage active, not soil active. But in the situation we are discussing, it depends on the grass species you have. Some grow with long connected root runners (rhizomes). If you spray the grass in the driveway, those leaves are connected to grass patches in the yard, making a huge grass patch effectively one plant. So it’s the same as spraying half the leaves on one plant. It will still kill the plant. Kentucky bluegrass is an example of a rhizome grass. Other species like tall fescue are separate plants growing close together in a lawn. It depends on what grass species are in the lawn

 

[lman]

It works for me. I didn't know they had grass in NM.